I'm a Trainerroad guy because i'm self coached and it gives me good structure. Seen some great gains over the years and like the base build specialty setup. It was interested listening to the trainerroad guys talk on the recent podcast about being bored on the trainer. Zwift is definitely more entertaining and probably a better choice if you have your own plan from a coach.

I have used both. Have an active Zwift subscription and have used TrainerRoad in the past. If you plan on doing some of the group rides / structured workouts on Zwift then it is a lot of fun and very social. The training plans on Zwift have come a long way but pale in comparison to TrainerRoad. The structured workouts in TrainerRoad are really second to none. If you want to just train then TrainerRoad is what you want. If you want something that might help convince your wife to get on the bike and train then Zwift is probably your answer.

Your are going to get a split of pros and cons for each platform. I like Zwift better for the simple reason that I ride more often with Zwift. TR is a great platform as well. I would go with whatever is going to make you ride more.

I started with zwift (hit it hard last winter), and am only a week ahead of your decision making process.

My motivation on zwift was PR's on the virtual segments. It was also a fun novelty. The motivation was similar to how I used Strava segments in the rear world to train high intensity intervals. I was not much for the social side of zwift (group rides), and I did only two races. THey were fun, but I never did more. I probably should. Zwift training programs are needlessly complex to keep people interested. I am unsure how evidence based they really are.

This winter I subscribed to trainerroad. So far it seems like a bunch of sweetspot intervals (mid vol base 2), but I think the key (one week in...) is that it seems paced for sustainability, and there are plans for your needs/goals. Lets see how I feel in 5 weeks. In my base plan I am doing mostly 1-1.5hr workouts 5 days a week for 6 weeks. But there is lots of text in each workout to keep you distracted, and working on things like relaxation, breathing, pedaling exercises, etc. So I found the 1 hr workouts go by fast because they are A: intense, and B: somewhat engaging. plus when I am hovering around ftp I am not looking for deep mental stimulation, just basic brainless distractions. recovery rides... I would listen to a podcast or watch something.

Currently I run trainerroad on my phone, and run through zwift at the same time on my tv for something visual. I then listen to music. But I focus mostly on the trainerroad coaching in the workout.

But with strava/zwift/trainerroad, it is all a bit much.

For me the decision is all about goals. If I have a goal or goal races then I prefer TR. However, if it's off season and I want to ride to stay in shape and have fun I prefer Zwift. Right now I'm using Zwift and love it. The companion app on my phone allows me to look for upcoming races/rides that I might enjoy.

The main differentiation between Zwift and TrainerRoad is TR has a huge catalog of workouts and a large set of training plans. Zwift has workouts and plans but way fewer than TR.

There is nothing special about TR's app. Its no different than programming a workout with targets into your Garmin, it just saves that work. What you are really paying for is the plan and workout catalogs.If you were thinking of getting a coach but don't want to spend the money, TR is the go to option for off the shelf cycling plans. Its really a coaching service, not an app.

The Zwift app as an app gives you way more riding options than TR. You can run erg workouts, free ride their courses and interact with other riders or do group rides or races. As an app,it is on a whole different planet than TR. You can do workouts on Zwift just like on TR, you just have to pay third parties to get a full selection (or key in your own).

TR and Zwift are different but can be used as complements to each other. If you can swing it, getting and using both is the way to go. Do your plan intervals on TR and use Zwift rides for the longer more steady state rides and as a surprisingly good sub for the physical and mental "get outside and just ride the bike" break you're longing for in the depths of winter. Its not really outside but its surprising on how close Zwift can seem to riding outside.

To toss in a third option... if you're into TP, then you might enjoy PerfPro. It has a ton of workouts and is a one time license fee. It's what I use as I'm not into Zwift'ing.

I would suggest commit to trying zwift for at least two months to see if you and your wife like it. I like TR,their structured plans, and their iphone app. If I was going for a more casual approach to training I would just pick zwift and jump on to do group rides, or races, or just do hill repeats or just ride around an chase who ever passes me.

Zwift is more fun for racing and doing events... staying in groups, drafting, etc. And if your watts are high, it's more fun. If your watts are low, you'll be passed by everyone and it will suck.

What w/kg can hang with the pack in Zwift?

It depends... and what category you are... If the event has single draft or double draft turned on... how many are in the pack, how much they weigh, how tall they are, and if you are on flat, downs or ups. Going down hill you can pedal easy and stay tucked in. On the flats, I can do 2.4 and stay behind someone doing 3.2 in a double draft. Eventually the string will snap and you have to put down some watts to get back in the draft. Going up, you have to match or stay within 0.1 / 0.2 of others. You just have to keep an eye on it. A lot of times you will yo-yo in the group... you'll be in the back staying on... and then you'll sling shot to the front... and then fade back to the rear.

I've been using both simultaneously for a couple of years.

TR for the workouts and training plans
Zwift for the sense that you're not suffering alone in the basement (messaging, Ride Ons, Group rides, Races, and just seeing other 'riders' out there)

I would love to settle on just one, but neither does everything (yet).

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Munq

What about sufferfest?

Subscribe traineroad=>copy/paste workouts to Zwift=>unsubscribe trainerroad.

Usually 8" gets you in the door.

If you have Sufferfest vids they integrate will with PerfPro. They have two flavors of FTP for the workouts and you just associate the vid with the workout. You could do them without the videos.

It's a shame Sufferfest doesn't sell the vids anymore. I'd love to buy more but their app environment is probably a better money revenue stream for them and I'm happy with PerfPro and the vids I do have.

That said I tend to build workouts based on what my coach builds for me.. again PerfPro for the win.

Does this work? Can I copy and paste an entire base build and specialty plan on TR into Zwift?

I used both at one time, but have settled on Trainer road. There's a lot of personal preference in play here. For me, I have two TV's mounted on the wall in front of my bike. One, mounted fairly low for easy viewing when in the aero bars, is for video entertainment (sports, movies, concerts, documentaries, roku, etc). The upper one displays the trainerroad (or Zwift) program.

If you're in to group rides/interactive cycling and that sounds fun, zwift obviously meets that goal. For me, I prefer to watch videos while riding, and zwift conflicts with that, since I can't really pay attention to both. Once I figured that out, I let the zwift subscription expire and have just been using trainer road/video entertainment setup.

If you have a library of workouts that you own, then yes, you can save them as .zwo files and upload them into your personal catalogue of Zwift workouts.

The writing is on the wall for TR...Zwift can literally do everything TR can and so much more that TR cannot. As Zwift builds its library of workouts and training plans, TR will become a footnote of how we used to train. If I were Zwift and a famous coach, I'd be looking to put together some Joe Friel Tri Academy training plans...stick in your FTP and run threshold and go.

I use Zwift to run the structure workouts my coach gives me. They automatically sync from TrainingPeaks, so I log in, select workout, and ride. Even while doing a workout, the visuals and the people I know on Zwift make for a more dynamic riding experience than looking at the yellow line. My coach also gives me free rides with general targets/limits for riding in the hills near my house in Taipei. When it's cold and grey, I can get that riding experience in Zwift, with a few routes, like Little Big Foothills, that are perfect for a few harder intervals and some easy zone 2.

I was surprised to see how well TR is doing against Zwift in the poll last week. I'm glad we are not all the same...but having tried both, and relying on a coach not a workout library for workouts, Zwift is for me the way to go without question. And when you look at the money Zwift has and the ambition of Eric Min, Zwift today, as good as it is, is only just getting started.

This is like windows/apple battle of the past!
For me, I am a better rider at 62 than when I was 45 thanks to TR Ironman program.
I need to have a structured plan and I found that Zwift, while entertaining, is too distracting to do a structured workout and you race more than intended!
I have TR on one tablet and Netflix on a second tablet and I follow the TR training plan.
I found that since the workouts are based on your own FTP, the different workouts are really efficient!
The recovery one are much easier than what I was doing, and the hard intervals are much harder than what I was doing before but doable!
I like to have the weekly plan so you can tweak if you need vs your work or availability but it gives you a good idea of what to do!

I've been using both for several years now. Typically I have TR "run" the workout and I've got Zwift running in the background just for something to look at. That said I haven't needed to follow a structured plan the last couple months so I have been playing around on Zwift a bit more. The group rides are fun if you can hang and find one that does not immediately turn into a race (unless that's your thing). I think the newer fence feature is a good addition as it keeps the group together the entire way which for me makes the ride more fun.

I had never tried a Zwift workout before, but over the past couple weeks I completed all the Zwift Tri Academy bike workouts and found them to be pretty fun. They still have a lot of work to do for workouts though as I think the user interface is pretty poor. Once you're in the workout it's ok but I prefer the graphs of TR to the giant list of intervals you get on Zwift. Also, selecting which workout to do is pretty cumbersome and they are not really organized at all. I use it on Apple TV which may contribute to the problem, but I hear a new user interface is coming soon. I think if they clean that up and expand their workout catalog they could really really put the hurt on TR.

I'm starting "formal" training for 2020 in a couple weeks so I'll jump back into a TR training plan then, but still plan to keep both apps running together.

I hope the Zwift pricing doesn't continue to climb too much as I do not want to have to choose between the two. I've been on TR a long time and have a very low grandfathered rate so I doubt I'll ever let it go.

Curious, what TR plan are you using or have you used, and how'd it work out for you?

I agree that right now Zwift 'plans' and even their structured workouts are a bit of a drag to find and use. It helps if you use some 3rd party lists of them to find them.

This one is pretty good, "What's on Zwift?"
https://whatsonzwift.com/workouts/ftp-builder/

And this one for the upcoming events, you can more easily see how many people are going
https://zwifthacks.com/app/events/

Last year I did Sweet Spot Base 1 and 2 and then almost all of the sustained power build plan. That carried me into the spring and after that I did most of my riding outdoors. I saw a 40 watt increase over the course of the plans I did and enjoyed working my way through them.

I will say it is a bit intimidating to sign up for plans of their length. Life/work/etc always throws a kink in the schedule each year and it can be frustrating to not be able to complete a plan. I did like the Zwift Tri Academy set up because I knew I could finish the plan in just a couple weeks and that made it motivating.

That said clearly you won't get a huge training benefit from a 7 workout plan vs a legit 6-8 week training block, but it was a good little goal to focus on while I'm not taking my training too seriously.

Did you do any of the triathlon, plans, or did you just do the SS cycling plans and layer tri on top?

I'm asking because I know people seem to have had good success with their cycling-only plans, but it's a whole nother ball game once you start training seriously for triathlon with all the SBR balance issues.